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May 24, 2010

The Safety Of Mines

Members of Congress are in Beckley, W.Va. today to examine last month's Upper Big Branch mine disaster. Many of those testifying will be family members of the 29 miners who died in the blast. Frank Markosek knows about the dangers of mine work. He was a miner for 30 years before he became a mine inspector with MSHA, the government agency that oversees mine safety. He was part of the Crandall Canyon rescue crew that tried save trapped mine workers in 2007. That mission was cut short when the mine collapsed again, killing three rescuers and leaving Frank with traumatic brain injury. Dick talks with Frank and his wife Trudy about their lives in the aftermath of the Crandall Canyon mine disaster, and their thoughts on what should be done to improve mine safety.

Dick speaks with Sheila Coleman of the Hillsborough Justice Campaign about the way the British government dealt with a tragic incident in a Liverpool soccer stadium, and how it became a pivotal moment for people there. Two decades later, British Prime Minister David Cameron has apologized.

Guest Host Sean Cole speaks with Cryn Johannsen, who is an activist on student debt issues. She threw out a question in her blog about whether anyone had suicidal feelings, and was alarmed at how many people wrote saying they did.

With news of tear gas use in various Occupy demonstrations, Dick speaks with former Seattle Police Chief Norm Stamper, who oversaw the decision to tear gas a huge crowd during the World Trade Organization protests in 1999.

More from The Safety Of Mines [5.24.10]

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